New-Age Dr. Doolittle In Graton

Kelly St. John, Chronicle Staff Writer

Published 4:00 am, Friday, April 6, 2001

Photo: ERIC LUSE

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Marta Williams,Graton,CA,communicates with her dog Brydie at her home using mental skills without talking. She is able to carry on a conversation with the animal close by or anywhere in the world. She travels to Europe soon to teach and work with clients animals there. BY ERIC LUSE/THE CHRONICLE less

Marta Williams,Graton,CA,communicates with her dog Brydie at her home using mental skills without talking. She is able to carry on a conversation with the animal close by or anywhere in the world. She travels ... more

Photo: ERIC LUSE

New-Age Dr. Doolittle In Graton

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On a Saturday morning in the tiny Sonoma County town of Graton, seven pupils gathered in Marta Williams' living room. They came from as far away as Martinez and San Francisco for a simple purpose:

They want to talk to animals.

Call it intuition. Telepathy. A sixth sense. Even that inescapable "I have a hunch" feeling, Williams explained to the class.

"I'm reclaiming the word psychic," said the self-proclaimed animal communicator, "because it has such a bad name."

Bad name indeed.

To Williams' chagrin, when Sonoma County was named the country's quirkiest place by Modern Maturity magazine, tourism officials included her on a tour of quirks they gave to travel writers. Wary of what the public might think of a student "channeling" her newt Ruby, she kindly suggested it was a you-had-to- be-there kind of thing.

Mainstream scientists consider her craft to be science fiction. At best, they say, animal communicators know a lot about animal behavior and reading body language. At worst, they take advantage of desperate, gullible pet owners.

"Can you communicate with animals? Sure. Are they communicating through the paranormal? Emphatically, no," said Dr. Michael Shermer, publisher of Skeptic Magazine in Altadena, which investigates claims of paranormal activities and offers scientific explanations.

Born in Pennsylvania, Williams, 50, moved to Marin as a seventh-grader and graduated from Sir Francis Drake High School in San Anselmo. She received a master's degree in biology from San Francisco State and worked as an environmental scientist and wildlife rehabilitator.

In 1989, she traveled to the White Mountains in Southern California and journeyed alone into the desert, seeking a vision of how best to help wild animals and the Earth. That, explained the woman with a mild manner and long, reddish hair, is how "animal communication and I actually found each other."

People can talk telepathically with any animal, said Williams, once they overcome society's misguided teachings that animals do not have feelings.

Williams specializes in horses, and works with clients over the phone, using an animal's name and physical description to help her communicate with it telepathically from afar, without necessarily seeing it.

She travels as far as Europe to teach classes.

Barbara Chasteen of Sebastopol, who makes her living doing "bodywork" -- massage and muscle therapy for horses, said Williams has helped her identify health problems of Dana, her 25-year-old Morgan, when even veterinarians were at a loss.

(Of note: It is illegal for animal communicators to make medical diagnoses, and Williams points out her impressions are just that until veterinarians check them out.)

"When Marta is working with an animal in person, she closes her eyes and is in a quiet and receptive state. I couldn't get my horses to open their eyes when she was like that," Chasteen said. "It's way beyond speculation or a trick to me. It seems to be a natural way that the rest of the living world communicates."

Williams' reputation fills classes like this one, where new students paid $110 for an eight-hour course.

The group sat in a circle of chairs. In the middle of the room, Dougal, Williams' 14-year-old Irish wolfhound/Labrador retriever mix, and 6-year-old Brydie, a McNab sheepherding dog, relaxed on the rug. Her two cats were stowed away in the bedroom, and a tank of newts sat on the kitchen counter.

It was time for introductions.

Mari Anoran of Greenbrae, who works at an investment firm, brought her energetic 8-month-old black-and-white dog, Kersey. She and her husband found Kersey when he was a puppy awaiting adoption in Berkeley.

"I saw him and I just had this strong feeling, like a thought bubble," Anoran said. "He said, 'I'm the one. You're gonna get me.' "

When they asked to adopt Kersey, a humane society volunteer told her the puppy was spoken for and that he had a waiting list four names deep. But call it kismet -- the humane society called back saying it had the feeling Anoran should have the dog.

After a quick exercise -- practicing psychic abilities on each other -- the class got rolling. Animals are already in tune with their sixth sense, Williams explained, citing examples of a dog that freaks out over a seemingly friendly stranger who turns out to be untrustworthy.

The trick is to tune in to them.

For one exercise, classmates exchanged photographs of an animal they had back home. Williams told the class to close their eyes, take deep breaths and open their hearts to that animal or one in the room.

Make a connection, she said; send the dog the thought of a toy, and see what it sends back.

"The first thing I got was 'I love you,' " said Renee Gallegos, 41, a class veteran who was repeating the session for practice. She communicated with a tiny, wide-eyed Boston terrier. "She put her paw on a squeaky hamburger toy."

Lucy Aron then described her conversation with Dougal, a large, long-haired brown dog resembling an Irish terrier around his eyes and mouth.

"You have just experienced the way of sending and getting information," Williams said, cheering on the class. "When you verify enough, you'll get to the point where you believe this is really real."

By the day's end, the class worked together to answer specific-focus questions about pets in need. Anoran asked how to help Kersey heal his anxiety.

He's sensitive to noise and gets scared and skittish.

"It could be vaccinosis. You have to talk with a holistic vet about that, but sensitivity to vaccines can lead to sensitivity to noise," Williams said.

But the key is to ask Kersey, who lounged on the floor beside Anoran.

While the room was silent, Williams closed her eyes and drew her hands to her head. All other eyes were closed. A few minutes passed.

"I got a sense that he just picks up everything," said Michele Limacher of San Francisco. "I feel he could use more shielding, maybe some flower essences like St. John's wort."

"He's afraid of being alone because the place makes strange noises. Acupressure came up to help relieve the stress. And herbs," Gallegos advised. "And if you do leave him alone, leave on calming music and tell him where you are going."

At 5 p.m., Anoran, Kersey and the rest filed out of the living room after exchanging e-mail addresses and phone numbers so they can practice on each others' animals. Two students planned to return for an intermediate class the following day.

With thanks and a gentle suggestion to keep practicing, Williams bid the class good luck and reminded them that, if they get rusty, the next eight-hour Saturday is half-price.

Talk to the Animals Here's some of Marta Williams' advice for learning "animal communication."

Get a picture or description of the animal (or see it in person) before you try to connect. Close your eyes, relax your body and picture the animal in front of you.

Interact with the animal on the psychic plane, begin talking and record every impression that comes into your mind, now matter how weird it seems. When you are finished, say thank you.

The best way for beginners to practice is to ask someone else's animals "verifiable questions" and then check the answers with the animals' guardians. Some sample questions are:

Do you have a favorite place to sleep?

What are your favorite foods?

What is scary to you?

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